PeraMakan

i always love peranakan food for it's numerous spices and rich flavours (: gosh, i wish i could cook like that! i'm sure it's quite a tough job to cook this though. 

the #1 must-order dish at PeraMakan is their fried mee siam ($10)!!!!! it was so good.

i don't really know how to describe it, because i don't know what spices went into it, but trust me on this. it was really really delicious!!!! just look at those fat juicy prawns and you'll know what i mean when i tell you that they've put A LOT of effort into making this dish. it was superb!

i think we over-ordered because everything sounded so delicious and we were starving :P hahaha. we had the usuals such as babi pongtay ($14) and ayam rendang ($14) which were well done (: i especially liked the babi pongtay, with its melt-in-your-mouth texture. it literally fell to pieces when we tried to poke it with our forks!

we ordered the oxtail stew ($16), but i wasn't a big of this as it had a rather gamey taste, although it was extremely tender as well. 

i loved how interesting the jantung pisang kerabu ($12) sounded and tasted! it's a nyonya salad made of the heart of a banana bud, shredded mango and cucumber served with a generous topping of dried-shrimp sambal and coconut sauce. it was refreshing, light and gave a spicy kick all at the same time!

we opted for the slightly different chap chye masak titek ($14) which is a twist on the normal chap chye - taking it to a new level with spiciness. we didn't feel that it tasted significantly different though. 

and of course, nyonya desserts are not to be missed! even though i was full to bursting by that time >.< we had the chendol ($5), which was well done with its sweetness from the gula melaka ^^ (some portions were a little over-sweetened though). and i always loveeee the chendol strips ;) 

PeraMakan

10 Bukit Chermin Road, Keppel Club Level 3

Tel.: +65 6377 2829

Daily 11.30am-3pm, 6pm-10pm 

Serenity Spanish Bar & Restaurant

CRISPY SUCKLING PIGGGGG *oink*. so totally irresistible!! i don't know why its presentation looks so unflattering-ly simplistic, but i'm telling you that its appearance does not do justice to this pig at all. think pig's skin slow roasted for hours till a nice crackling crisp. in fact, this spanish style of roasting makes the skin so crisp, that it can be cut through with a plate! break a piece of skin off, pop it in your mouth and bite. it crumbles instantaneously, releasing a cacophony of aromas. then use your fork to prick the meat. it falls off the bone so easily, and when you put it in your mouth, it is so tender that you can't imagine (well at least i can't) how they managed to retain all the pork juices while creating such a crusty exterior! it's a perfect marriage of crisp and supple textures, and it's oh-so-sinful, but you wouldn't care less! it comes with lovely tomato jam and brown sauce on the side, which complement the meat wonderfully ^^ this monster though, is really expensive! 1/2 a suckling pig costs $168++ and feeds around 3-4 people.

we also ordered one of our favourite spanish dishes - black squid ink paella ($53 for 2 pax) to share. there was a generous amount of prawns, squid and mussels in it! :) and they were huge! especially the prawns. the rice was also fluffy and moist! such a delicious dish :D totally worth staining our teeth for this :P hahaha. although the good thing was that it actually wasn't very severe! (:

we also ordered some tapas to complement our two main dishes. the Pulpitos ($18.80) was a rather scary dish :p with whole baby octopus fried with garlic and olive oil. it's really quite scary seeing this and putting it in your mouth!! but the sauce was sublime ^^ i just happily slurped it up hehe. i must say that Serenity's food is quite pricey though!! :O but at least the portions justified the price. this size of tapas is larger than the general sizes you find in typical spanish restaurants. but $19 for tapas when i can get a full meal with that same amount of money? you can be sure that this is a once-in-a-long-while indulgence.

we also had the sauteed brussels sprout with serrano ham ($18.80). this was a simple dish, and the ham added a lovely savoury flavour to it.

we all bought drinks to complement our food! :D i absolutely loved my Sangria Pantera Rosa ($16) which was made of red wine, raspberry schnapps, mixed berries, mint and tonic. i was worried that it'll be too sweet because of the berries, but it turned out to be such a lovely combination with the mint that helped to balance out all the flavours.

and we just had to order some Spanish desserts to complete our meal! ;) the churros ($10.80) were pretty disappointing in my opinion though! as in the churros themselves were alright, but the hot chocolate was pretty watery! :(

i enjoyed the pastel de chocolate ($12.80) much more! it was a cashew nut brownie served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream! (: a pretty interesting brownie - i liked the crunch which the nuts contributed to it, and it was moist for the most part, except my last mouthful of it which was a bit of a downer. other than that, i always the classic combination of brownie+vanilla ice cream ;)

Serenity Spanish Bar & Restaurant
Vivocity #01-98/99
Tel.: +65 6376 8185
Sun-Thu 11am-11pm
Fri-Sat 11am-12am

Prive

Prive really has the perfect setting for a relaxing sunday brunch. tucked away at the south end of singapore, it's as if you're entering an oasis, with all the luxury yachts bobbing at the pier, warm sunlight reflecting off the water and a light buzz of chatter around.

food-wise, i would say that Prive has quite a standard menu (especially for brunch, which you're restricted to if you go there before 11.30am), but with some interesting hits as well. the eggs benedict ($16) is not done as well as what i've been accustomed to. the yolk was slightly too solidified! :( but the hollandaise sauce was delicious and went well with the smoked leg ham and streaky bacon, balancing out the flavours nicely.

the espresso panckae stack ($14) was something different! dense, yet fluffy pancakes infused with the flavour of espresso, topped with honeycomb, dark bitter chocolate pieces and drizzled with gooey chocolate sauce.

my prive's ultimate brekkie ($20) was a hearty big breakfast - 2 eggs (any style, i chose scrambled! and they had a nice fluffy texture, with a lovely flavour), english breakfast pork sausage, maple-roasted bacon, roasted roma tomato (absolutely yummy, oozing with fragrant juices), sauteed button mushrooms, a beautifully done crispy hashbrown and wholemeal toast.

prive serves normal homestyle pancakes ($13) as well, other than their espresso pancakes. this was pretty standard though, nothing particularly outstanding about it. you can opt for blueberries for an extra $2.

the dish i found most interesting was the black beans & eggs ($18). haha never seen a dish where the highlight is black beans! :P it was done pretty nicely though! i thought the black beans were quite tasty, and they came with two sunny side up eggs with jalepenos and crispy baby squid.

Prive

2 Keppel Bay Vista

Tel.: +65 6776 0777

Mon-Sun 9.30am-12am

Prima Tower Revolving Restaurant

you might wonder how i can actually stand eating in such a place. i'm terribly sensitive to motion sickness, and the fact that this restaurant is REVOLVING while i'm EATING pretty much scares me. but, the peking duck and the scallop egg white dish makes it *gulp* worth it. yup i'm still rather terrified of the possible effect this place has on me. but it's good. really good. and dont be scared by me :P the revolving is so slow, you can hardly notice it. but it'll give you a gorgeous view of resorts world and vivocity :)

the shredded scallops with fish and egg white ($30 small) is one of the dishes which i would come back again and again for (despite my fear :P). egg white, beaten to a fluffy mix with a generous amount of flavourful scallops and fish, this does well to whet the appetite before any meal - especially when you add a few drops of white vinegar (ooooooh yummy xD).

the authentic barbecued peking duck ($60 large) is another to-die-for dish :D yeah it's SO expensive, but so totally worth every bite ;) each crisp piece of skin, enveloped lovingly in a smooth egg skin wrap, encased with a piece of spring onion for a refreshing flavour, and dipped in the delicious hoisin sauce. i can't stop raving about it xD it's just absolutely delicious!!!! :D

since the peking duck dish only makes use of the skin, you can have a choice of what to do with the remaining duck meat. we chose to have it cooked with ee fu noodies (at additional cost) :D yummm :D

i can't remember what was the name of the vegetable we had :P but it was beautifully done - simple and healthy, nicely steamed in a tasty broth :)

finally, we had the red bean pancake ($20 small) for dessert. but this was slightly different from our favourite kind! it was a flourier, slightly spongy version, rather than crispy. not really suited to our tastes, but i appreciated the generous amount of red bean paste within.

Prima Tower Revolving Restaurant

201 Keppel Road

Tel.: +65 6272 8822

Mon-Sat 11am-2.30pm

Sun & PH 10.30am-2.30pm

Daily 6.30pm-10.30pm

Marche

Thursday was my only free day at home! 'Recess Week' is seriously a dream. Reality is...'RUSH ALL THE PROJECTS AND HAVE MEETINGS EVERYDAY' Week :P I'm getting into the flow of university life. Not really used to it yet...but i guess i will...in time. Or maybe I don't want to get used to it, haha. For the first time in my life, i actually feel the pressures of multiple things coming at me at once. It's pretty amazing actually. I must say i have led a very relaxing life for the past 18 years of my life (: Well, this is an entire new experience for me, and it's not exactly a bad thing (: University life is totally 'happening' in every sense x)

Anyway, since today was my free day, i was able to have lunch with mummy and Yi. We went to Marche at Vivocity! (: I haven't been to Marche for a long long time! I love the style of that restaurant - it's absolutely novel and just reminds me of the bustling markets in other countries (: coincidentally, i HATE wet markets in singapore :P

this is just so cosy! (: I love it here xD

It seems to be a tradition for us to order rosti everytime we visit Marche. This was one of the first things i tried at Marche and i was pretty fascinated by it! (: I love how the shredded potato is fried so crisply, and it's plainness goes just nicely with the sour cream and the sausage which is just bursting with flavour. On its own, the sausage can taste reeeeeally salty, so I'd say, just eat it together with the rosti. It goes perfectly as they complement each other.

We tried the roasted chicken leg today. I liked how the chicken meat was nice and tender and i loved the plum sauce that came with it! :D

We saw a sign promoting the Crepe of the Week outside the restaurant, and decided right there that we had to try it! The crepe is soft, and chock full of ingredients such as chicken, tomatoes, mushrooms and lots of other things. Pop by Marche this week to try it! I enjoyed it (: But i was disappointed with the sauce - i felt that it didn't go well with the crepe at all! :(

I always come back to Marche again and again, mainly for the ambiance (: and also for those cute little cards they use (: it's such innovative way of keeping track of your order (:

i couldn't resist taking a photo of this (: Love! <3

Marche

Vivocity #03-14

Tel.: +65 6736 8226

Mon-Thu, Sun: 10am-11pm

Fri-Sat: 10am-12am